Thursday, February 07, 2013

No MNLF rescue of 3 foreign hostages of Abu Sayyaf - military

MANILA - The military's Western Mindanao Command denied reports that
three foreign hostages of the Abu Sayyaf Group were rescued by the Moro
National Liberation Front (MNLF).

Colonel Rodrigo Gregorio, Wesmincom spokesman, said a check with the
2nd Marine Brigade commander based in Sulu showed that there have been
no MNLF offensives against the ASG since Sunday.

A certain Emmanuel Fontanilla, who introduced himself as a spokesman
of the MNLF, told several media interviews that the MNLF were able to
rescue three foreign hostages from the ASG on Tuesday, inluding two
Dutchmen and a Swiss national.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) earlier said the ASG is holding
at least five more foreigners hostage in Sulu, including Jordanian
journalist Baker Atyani and two European birdwatchers.

Gregorio said Fontanilla was spreading "disinformation" to the media.

In an earlier interview, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief
of staff General Emmanuel Bautista said soldiers in Sulu were instructed
to maintain vigilance while at the same time ensure that the conflict
does not spillover to other areas in Sulu.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Abigail Kwok | InterAksyon.com | February 7, 2013 | Article Link